Missouri Department of Conservation wardens recently removed 48 illegal noodling boxes from Truman and Montrose lakes. Conservation agents Kevin Dixon and Andy Bullock discovered several of the boxes in August, when drought lowered the lakes' water level. At about the same time, anglers began reporting finding noodling boxes. The agents used the Conservation Department's helicopter to check for more of the illegal structures.
Missouri noodlers may not use any device, such as a hook, gaff, rope or box to attract catfish.
Catfish are susceptible to noodling because they retreat to underwater cavities during the spawning season to protect their eggs. This habit enables noodlers to find large catfish. The same cavity may produce several catfish, each weighing upwards of 50 pounds, in one season.
Conservation agents staked out some of the illegal boxes they knew about and arrested several people using them. When the peak noodling season had passed, the Conservation Department removed the remaining boxes. Ten conservation agents and 21 other Conservation Department workers took part in the operation. Some of the boxes were so large that pontoon boats, winches and heavy equipment were required to remove them.
Several of the noodling boxes removed from Truman and Montrose lakes were made with huge tires from earth-moving equipment. An opening cut into the tread surface of each tire created an entry hole. The center of each tire was covered with sheet metal, completing the trap.
Other designs used large, round cable spools, square boxes made of plywood, bathtubs and water heaters.
Agents found many noodling boxes of similar design in clusters, leading the agents to believe a few poachers placed most of the boxes.
Placing noodling boxes in public waters is littering. Both littering and illegal hand-fishing are Class A misdemeanors with penalties of up to $1,000 and a year in jail.
